• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

Law School Toolbox®

All the tools you need for law school success

  • Tutoring
  • Courses
    • Start Law School Right
  • Job Help
  • Law School 101
  • Blog
  • Podcast
  • About

Why Sample Answers are Law School Gold

November 20, 2013 By Alison Monahan 1 Comment

Gold StarQuick question: What do you do with the sample answers your professors hand out in law school?

If you’re a typical student, you probably answered in one of two ways:

  1. Um, does anyone actually have time to read those things?
  2. Yeah, I looked at a couple and noticed a few things I missed.

If you had either of these responses, you are missing out on a great opportunity to improve your exam taking skills!

Why?

Because these sample answers are absolute gold.

Using Sample Answers to Save Yourself Hours of Effort

Think about it for a second.

Your professor just handed you a TEMPLATE of a perfect exam answer.

What could be more valuable? She’s told you exactly what she wants to see in terms of analysis AND given you all the law you need to do the analysis.

You see where I’m going with this?

You can save yourself hours of effort by printing out every sample answer you can find (from your professor) and going through each one with a highlighter. One color for issue statements, one for legal rules, etc.

What do you end up with? A framework for your own answer on every topic covered in the exam! All you have to do is write out (or memorize) this framework and the corresponding rule statements, and you’re well on your way to a solid answer.

“But wait,” I hear you objecting, “my professor isn’t going to give this same question again.”

That’s right, the facts will be different on your test. But the reality is there’s a very limited universe of topics you can test on in each class, and the basic themes are going to come up over and over again.

Are you really going to have a 1L Torts exam that doesn’t cover negligence? I seriously doubt it.

But that’s also why you want to get every exam from your professor that you can find. You’ll see what shows up over and over again (obviously you need to know these areas cold), but you’ll also expand your list of the “20% topics” (things that show up rarely, but differentiate the As from the Bs).

Basically, your professor’s answer becomes your attack plan, in a way that’s 100% targeted to how they think about the law. And who’s always right in law school? Your professor.

Take that to heart, and give them what they want! Your GPA will thank you.

–

Want more? Sign up for our free mailing list today.

Here are some other helpful posts:

  • The Single Most Important Word in a Law School Exam Answer
  • Where Can You Find Sample Law School Exam Answers?
  • How to Organize Your Exam Answers
  • The Key to Law School Exam Success? Think Like Your Professor

Image by vikush via stock.xchng.


Law School Toolbox logo

Looking for some help to do your best in law school? Find out about our law school tutoring options.


About Alison Monahan

Alison Monahan is the founder of The Girl's Guide to Law School, which helps law students and prospective law students get in to law school, get through, and stay true to themselves. Alison is a graduate of Columbia Law School, where she was a member of the Columbia Law Review and served as a Civ Pro teaching assistant. You can find her on Twitter at @GirlsGuideToLS.

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Lisa

    12.03.13

    Ha ha! So true! Very good advice.

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Primary Sidebar

  • Podcast
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • RSS
  • YouTube

About Us

If you find law school tough, you are not alone! The Law School Toolbox team is here to help you through it. Check out our helpful free content, podcasts, courses and one-on-one tutoring. Thanks for stopping by and drop us a line if you have any questions. We also invite you to join our weekly mailing list, for advice right to your inbox.

Recent Posts

Using Legal Writing in the Workplace

Using Legal Writing in the Workplace

This month, we wanted to talk about legal writing in the workplace. Sure, this is mid-school year, but many students are thinking about upcoming … Read More about Using Legal Writing in the Workplace

Podcast Microphone

Podcast Episode 426: Dealing with Overwhelm in Your Job Search (w/Sadie Jones)

Welcome back to the Law School Toolbox podcast! Today, we have ex-BigLaw recruiter Sadie Jones with us to talk about dealing with overwhelm in the job … Read More about Podcast Episode 426: Dealing with Overwhelm in Your Job Search (w/Sadie Jones)

Podcast Microphone

Podcast Episode 425: Exploring the Legal Tech Ecosystem (w/Colin Levy)

Welcome back to the Law School Toolbox podcast! In today's episode, we're talking with Colin Levy -- author of the book The Legal Tech Ecosystem -- … Read More about Podcast Episode 425: Exploring the Legal Tech Ecosystem (w/Colin Levy)

Podcast Microphone

Podcast Episode 424: Quick Tips — Exam Prep Triage

Welcome back to the Law School Toolbox podcast! Preparing effectively for exams is critical to doing well in law school, so you should start early, … Read More about Podcast Episode 424: Quick Tips — Exam Prep Triage

Podcast Microphone

Podcast Episode 423: Law School Exam Prep (Part 2)

Welcome back to the Law School Toolbox podcast! This is the second episode in a two-part series on getting ready for exams. Last time, we talked … Read More about Podcast Episode 423: Law School Exam Prep (Part 2)

Want Better Law School Grades?

Sign Up for Our Exam Tips!

Footer

  • Podcast
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • RSS
  • YouTube
  • Blog
  • Podcast
  • Tutoring
  • Courses
  • Job Help
  • About
  • Contact
  • Login
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms & Conditions
  • Refunds

Copyright 2023 Law School Toolbox®™